MineStory: Retold
by themysticutahraptor
Summary: It is not always fate that guides people down paths, sometimes, the choices one makes can result in extraordinary circumstances. This is the story of a mechanic, stuck in another world, surrounded by royally monstrous teenagers who range from crazed, to cute, to both. Along with the nigh god-like parents who let them roam the land of Minecraftia unleashed. May Notch help him.
1. Chapter 1

**Start**

"James. We need to talk."

James rolled himself out from underneath the car, sweat dripping off his t-shirt and forehead as hours of tedious work took a toll on him, even with his relatively athletic physique.

"Franky? Something up? If you need me to take a look at the next car now then just give me another minute. I finally figured out what was wrong with the suspension…. Old piece of crap would make you look young." James paused, axle wrench tucked neatly under his elbow as he looked up at the gritty older man.

Franky sighed, long and heavily, brushing back his thinning silver hair as he looked down at what was probably his most loyal and hard working employee. His only employee, not discounting the guys he occasionally hired on the side.

"James. You need to take a break."

_What?_

A flood of different emotions ran through James's mind, thoughts cobbling together haphazardly as he did his best to sit up suddenly, the look of accusation already forming on his face only seconds after the admission.

Franky held a hand up, urging James to let him continue.

"James, you've been working here for god knows how many years, ever since I found you in that junkyard, but trust me when I say you need a break every once and a while kid. If I wasn't around, you would've dropped dead before you would admit to ever needing to unwind."

James frowned, a retort already forming in his mind. "But-"

Franky waved him off. "I know, I know. But kid, don't keep holding out forever. I already got your paycheck for the rest of the week, and before you throw a fit, know that you earned it, you and I both know that I don't give out money for free, and this is one of those cases. If you're smart, you'll get yourself something nice, take some time off to head out and see things for once." Franky said, scratching his sparse beard before continuing with a head bob, slight smile forming on his face.

"Who knows, maybe you'll find yourself a cute girl that you want to take home."

James snorted, bitter amusement at that notion surfacing briefly above his inner turmoil.

Franky patted him on the back, ushering him out the side opening of the building and towards the cheap, early era Camaro James had fixed up enough to call his own. "Regardless, I'm not asking twice."

"Clear?"

James swallowed back his feelings, that familiar look on Franky's face telling him of just how 'end of discussion' this conversation was. "Clear."

Franky's expression softened, a soft warmth in his eyes. "Good man. Take care of yourself this week, okay? You're a good kid, and I'm glad for it. Just don't make trouble for yourself you hear?" He noted, holding out the week long check for James, white paper clear as day.

"Sure thing Franky." James lied, fingers closing over the piece of paper like a malfunctioning bear trap.

Unfortunately, that one little lie was something much greater than what either of them could ever have imagined.

**-O-O-**

_Take a break._

Something so so simply on paper. Take some time off, find something to do, relax and just enjoy life.

So why was he so tense?

The brazillian-latino ran his fingers through his wild dark curly hair, huffing in admonishment to no-one but himself as he laid stock still, staring up at the ceiling of his apartment.

The old man just haddd to kick him out, didn't he?

James found himself growing more and more frustrated with every still moment, every heartbeat of a reminder that this was so… wrong, so alien to his mindset, that he just could not convince himself to appreciate it for what it was. Simple, average, relaxation.

Like hell.

James pushed himself off the mattress, sidling his way over to his computer, sparing one singular glance towards the elliptical shapes forming through the window.

Oh right, today was the eclipse.

And here he was, sitting inside, losing his damn mind.

For one contemplative moment, James actually considered going outside, down to the pub or some other place in Atlanta, to potentially hit up people and talk with those outside his considerably small social bubble.

That idea died in a fire, where it belonged.

James turned back to his computer, booting up the old hard drive and watching as the monitor slowly came to life, traces of dust still lingering on the metallic edges that he wiped off with a thumb.

It had been ages, but the old thing was still kicking. Years of disregard notwithstanding.

His phone was on the charger, and right now, he felt like at least making an effort to do something, anything that required at least the barest hint of exertion and brainpower. Searching for refurbished hardware and mechanical tools for next week would at least give him a focus for the moment.

He logged in, desktop screen showing an array of old programs, windows vista edition. One particular program catching his eye for a brief second after, standing out alone, right in the corner of the screen.

_Minecraft._

Damn… how long had it been since he had seen that around? James didn't keep track of Youtube or internet statuses, but he had at least glimpsed it enough in some of the tabs to know it had been going on at some point.

The game had been a time consumer, back when he was still growing up, still just a sullen brat of a kid when Franky had plopped him in front of a crappy laptop, showed him the game, and told him to go nuts.

Eventually, his interest had dropped, too caught up with other pursuits to devote any estimate time to goofing off with it.

Idly, James realized his mouse was already crossing the screen, headed not towards the Windows application, but the very corner, where said nostalgic game sat comfortably.

He clicked.

Outside, the sky darkened, perfect alignment turning sinister as space twisted for a brief moment, shadows stretching across the room.

James looked up, something akin to pins and needles lighting up in the back of his mind, head swerving to look out the window, scanning the entire room for some unseen threat.

Nothing but calm silence answered, the darkened shade of the sky merely being an overcast from the clouds.

_Huh. That was weird._ James thought, danger pushed out his mind without a second thought, the young man tur-

He couldn't breathe.

James didn't even have a chance to scream, yell, or even talk as a ghostly, pale white hand stretched from out his blackened screen, twin pinpricks staring at him blankly, but with a hint of malicious glee hidden behind them.

**"Vessel."** He heard a voice say, shivers of fear running down his spine as it came from around him, reaching into a deep, primal part of his brain, screaming at him in silenced terror.

The shadows grew around the room, as multiple, spectral shapes seemed to take form, replacing every surface, every object, shifting and roiling like a sea of wrong. Terrible icons and ruined souls crying.

The world was spinning, and James was falling, deep, deep, deeper into the hellish abyss, being made to subsume, to submit no differently than the wretched spirits that had invaded his world.

_No…_

**"Oh? This is intere-"**

James screamed, voice filled not with fear, not with rage, but pure will, concentrated, absolute. He was him, and no-one else. God be damned, he would not be snuffed like a candle.

He would _burn_ before that happened.

**"What?!"**

James crawled, fingers seeping into ethereal mass as he pulled and yanked away from the force, mass roiling in sharp intervals as the cries intensified, confusion and rage filling the nigh-hollow spirits.

_No no no no! Live LIVE LIVE!_ James rattled mind demanded, the endless mantra fueling his tidings.

The force, the spirit, that sought to invade his home, invade his body, take his soul would soon find itself at a loss, primal fear and instinct to bow, to be crushed beneath the force demanding subsumption soon lost out, replaced by a seemingly endless emotional wave of rage, anger, determination. All spirited, like none before.

**"No! How?!"**

Wherever this thing had come from, wherever it had been…

Souls didn't burn as bright.

Like a hyena sensing a stubborn foe, the spirit attempted to withdraw, sloppily disengaging as it burned away heavy pieces of itself in an attempt to get this ne'er' do-well away from it's precious collection, it's mass, composed of vitality itself.

Unfortunately, it wasn't quite that easy.

Space twisted, folding inward as life after life, power after power was burned away in an attempt to open a new gate, a sliver of space-time cut through like a precision dagger, that would soon find the wound healed, repairing itself much like a human body would a small cut or injury.

Like a stick caught in a river stream, the twin souls, one a formless mass, the other a living, solid being, were blended together, sucked into the gateway as if it was a natural whirlpool, the transmission reducing both of them to nothing but necessary components and pure spiritual power manifest. Like two drinks mixed together to form something new.

An unfortunate comparison, considering what would come of the result.

And that, of course, is where this story begins...

**-O-O-**

AN: We're back people. This time, let's try this the right way. Please and thank you. If you've got comments, let's hear em. In the meantime, I'll be starting fresh. So stay tuned for more.


	2. Chapter 2

**First Lesson**

_Where am I?_

The penultimate question, short, sweet, and a good way of telling that you've already screwed up somewhere along the way.

James found himself splayed on the ground, the dull thumping in his head like a nail being driven into his skull. If there was any other way to describe it, it was like being hungover, except ten times worse.

James groaned, flipping onto his back and squinting as harsh sunlight attacked his corneas. He tried to sit up, and failed, dizziness ensuing as he awkwardly lurched forward.

Yeah, this was pretty bad.

Even with his disheveled state, James refused to sit down, instead trying to stand up again and fighting against the nauseousness. Foggy memories of what had happened resurfacing, but only in bits and pieces. Like a daydream you couldn't recall.

Whatever had happened, it was plain to see that James wasn't still in his room, and as far as he was concerned, that was all that mattered at the moment.

James's hands planted themselves on the ground, the texture of soft dirt and bladed grass shifting underneath his fingers.

His vision cleared, and he finally took in his environment.

Everything was square.

"Oh what the fuck."He gawked openly, refusing to believe his eyes.

Like something out of an Escher painting, the environment around was made of nothing but rectangular structures. No oval or triangle in sight. Almost like...

_Minecraft._

James stumbled forward, elevating himself slightly as he took in the grassy forest, feet crunching over the dirt with a familiar sound.

Gingerly, he held out a hand, brushing his fingers through the underside of a nearby tree, noting the utterly realistic texture of the leaves as he rustled them gently.

He pulled his hand back, looking down at it with an utterly lost expression, a partial thought in his mind noting how he was still the exact same as before, human shapes and all.

This was getting way too weird to handle, way too quickly.

If it was any other time, he might've stopped and taken the time to process all of this. But the impression of harsh struggling and raw fear were still freshly imprinted in his mind, compelling him to take action before someone took that choice from him.

So James stood up tall, took a deep breath, and did what he did best.

Go for broke.

**-O-O-**

The feeling of wood buckling underneath his fist was a novelty to James.

Punching trees hadn't been his first idea. That had been trying to scout out the area. It was only after he realized that _maybe _things that worked here would adhere to some of the game's logic that he decided to make the attempt. It was better to do things prepared than blindly run around without precaution. And a cursory look around told him that he really _was_ in this Twilight Zone video game realm instead of just hallucinating off his ass.

So he decided to punch wood.

His initial relief that his hand didn't instantly break because of the attempt was followed by a lot of confusion, and a little bit of awe. Mostly at the fact that it didn't even hurt.

The physics of this world did seem a mirror image to the after mentioned video-game, but actually seeing it in person, in such detail and proximity failed to express just how... _odd _this all was.

Nonetheless, James kept at it, breaking wood by smashing his closed fist against oak and watching it change in real time, spindle cracks forming before the blocks just 'popped', like a balloon. Going from fully formed to tiny, handheld pieces.

James gathered himself, eye twitching slightly as the utterly alien sensation of blocks being sucked into his body happened, some sort of gravity well effect ensuing the moment he made to grab the tiny objects.

_Ugh. This is so freaky. _James shuddered, eyes narrowing as he shrugged it off and continued with the venture.

Even now, a part of him was hyper aware of where the blocks had disappeared to after they entered his body. A sixth sense, or awareness, of some kind, telling him exactly how many blocks he had on him, what kind they were, and how to arrange them to accomplish... _something_.

Eventually, the tree was left barren, the grass blocks from before still hanging in the air without pause, defying the laws of physics and everything they stood for like it was second nature.

_Ignore it. Ignore it. Just ignore it. You have things to do._ James repeated to himself, pointedly trying to focus on his current loadout.

It had been ages since he had played Minecraft, and it showed, the young man temporarily lost as he tried to think about what he was supposed to do next, coupled with the strange esoteric power happening inside of him.

_Alright... wood. Wood does... something in Minecraft. If you placed it somewhere... or um, combined it. I think?_

James focused inward, closing his eyes as he concentrated on the odd feeling, awareness bringing to mind the image of 5 oak wood blocks, in a seemingly vast expanse of darkness. Not infinite, but larger than normal comprehension. Distorted, but whole, somehow.

What followed was probably the oddest part of all. Because amongst that odd, distorted expanse, James saw a phantom image. Like an overlay, showing him something that could be, but _wasn't_. At least... not yet.

With all the curiosity of a child, James reached out to that image, pulling it together while intimately aware of how the oak pieces began morphing, changing, in a way not un-similar to two magnets being brought together. James paused, the phantom image growing stronger, more _real_ before he had abruptly stopped.

That brief second stretched on, and then stopped, as James _clamped _down on the process, accelerating it to completion in an instant.

The pressure weighing down on the metaphysical items lasted for a brief heartbeat before they buckled under his command, popping like bubbles.

And just like that, he made his first wood items. Five oak wood blocks turning into 20 planks. The moment of success drawing out as James's mind caught up, a brief monotonous thought crossing his mind.

_Well that was anticlimactic..._

Still had to start from somewhere, I guess.

**-O-O-**

James caught on fairly quickly after that.

The space, or _inventory _as James quickly realized, was actually pretty easy and intuitive, after he grasped it originally.

It had only taken a quick few attempts after that to truly get the hang of it. And now that he _could _open and access things from it on command, he had sped up tremendously.

Putting down blocks, or removing them for that matter was a piece of cake. With a little focus, the items that he wanted would pop right into his hand, miniaturized until he deigned to set them down or return them to the inventory. Combining, or crafting, as it was called, took a little more focus, since he had to get it right, but once he actually figured out how to make a genuine crafting table, it was more of a luxury than a requirement. The physical object doing it's job well in speeding up the creation process.

Which left him here, holding a wooden pickaxe with a great measure of ease. With one somewhat worrying revelation on his hand.

_Isn't everything supposed to be blocky?_

James swung the pickaxe through the air experimentally, the smooth wood fitting nicely in his hand as it cut a clear arc in the air. Which was a problem, since it _shouldn't _be. Being made of nothing but rectangular pieces and pixels.

And yet here he was, holding a genuinely authentic, realistic pickaxe, curved surface tipped at the ends with two sharp prongs, _not _at all tapered into rectangular pieces.

He threw it on the ground, wanting to see what would happen, and was utterly taken off guard when it suddenly flickered, shape going from a rounded normal tool to the iconic flat imagery found in the rest of the world.

_Okay, I am a physics breaker. That's... interesting._

Indeed, as the pickaxe once again flickered, a microsecond of glitching odd movement before the pickaxe once again took the shape of it's real life counterpart.

James observed it for a few seconds longer, then shook his head, dismissing the pickaxe and letting it disappear back inside his inventory, leaving him empty handed, but no less determined.

He had stripped the other nearby trees dry, and was ready to start moving, to _truly _scout the rest of his environment, and maybe, just maybe, figure out what the hell he was doing here in the first place.

James looked out over the horizon, a vast grass plain covering a large portion of the landscape, followed by distant mountain hills. The sun hanging just above the corner, and casting the hillside shadow over the rest.

"Alright Wonderland. What else are you going to be throwing at me?" James muttered, to no-one in particular save for himself.

A snort, followed by a neigh, came from right next to him, and James turned around just in time to witness the blocky form of a small pig, accompanied by the taller and more distinguished form of a pixelated horse staring up at him.

James blinked, and the two animals blinked with him, his gaze focusing especially on the horse. The faintest recall telling him that horses weren't _in _Minecraft the last time he checked.

"Okay. That's definitely a start."

**-O-O-**

AN: It's only going to get stranger for you James.

In other news, there are a few rules to this world that match the game, but there will also be a few differences. _Major _ones. James isn't as much the exception to this new world in terms of appearance as it may seem. There are beings out there that have similarly altered physiologies, or dispositions that may clue in to the fact that there's more than meets the eye. Generally speaking, if something looks more real than the rest of the things in this world, concern may be advised. As James will soon learn, quite personally.


End file.
